Image copyrightRNLI SkegnessImage caption
The man was injured after diving from the hexagonal-shaped part of the old pier foundation

A man has been rescued from the sea becoming unconscious after diving off a pier in Skegness, the RNLI has said.

The man got into difficulty after jumping from the old pier foundations in the resort on Tuesday evening.

The incident came after four men were seen jumping from the pier and a lifeguard warned them of the dangers.

Three of the men stopped what they were doing, but one man ignored the advice and dived into the sea.

The lifeguard involved in the rescue, Tom Roberts, said the man ended up unconscious about 100m (328ft) from the pier.

'Hidden dangers'

He said he pulled him back to shore, where the man was given treatment before being taken to hospital.

Mr Roberts said he and his colleagues were just about to come off shift for the day when the incident happened.

He said the man could easily have drowned, and warned people to stay within marked areas for swimming.

It is not known at this stage how the man became unconscious, but officials said he may have hit his head on something under the water,

RNLI manager, Daniel Cooper, said: "When people jump or dive from a height into the sea they can't always see hidden dangers below the surface such as rocks and the depth of the water can also be very deceptive."